Mala Malu, Nuestra Senora de la Matapobre

I disagree with Tingog.com and his otherwise worthy anti-Malu campaign, on one, single, point of principle: I’m not for firing people on the basis of what they write. So boycott as you please, but I don’t support having anyone fired. Why not take her travel photos and run a Mala Malu photo caption contest instead? Loads of fun and extremely educational.

Here, you can play with these charming photos and add your own captions:

The Spanish have a maxim for everything, but for cultivated Filipinos of an older generation, one of their all-time favorites (my father used to quote it to me whenever he thought I was being rude) was:

Lo cortes no quita lo valiente.

It means: One’s valor is never diminished by one’s courtesy. But of Mala Malu and her que asco columns, I think I’ve found a word our elders would have thought fitted her to a “t”: a more cursi set of opinions would be hard to find.

Thanks to this great find, you don’t have to guess what our elders meant by using that word –cursi– to describe the Mala Malus of their generation:

In his book Cassell’s Colloquial Spanish, A. Bryson Gerrard explains his British take on the word:

“A colloquial but widely used adjective meaning something like ‘socially pretentious’; it describes people who give themselves the airs of a higher social class, non-U pretending to be U. When applied to things, e.g. furniture of clothes, it contains the idea of noveau-riche. High-class houses in the best Spanish tradition are furnished with an aristocratic simplicity and restraint, and the gaudy, ornate Empire-style furniture which you sometimes find in city apartments would be described as cursi. I once heard a Spaniard say of a friend’s tie iQué corbata más cursi! He was being facetious but i wondered what an Anglo-Saxon might have said … ‘What a fancy tie!’ … ‘What a pansy tie!’ … perhaps ‘What a ghastly tie! since it was not a compliment. Affectation, pretentiousness, excessive ornamentation are all involved.”

252 comments

malu fernandez and people like her, should have realized that it would only be a matter of time till the “acerbic wit” would get the better of them. writers should never take the power of their craft lightly.

Her MST article last April 16, 2007 was titled “Are you a stinky linky? Or do you smell like a divine divalicious babe?”

Wherein she wrote “… I was, however, encouraged by my travel agent to try out Emirates since it won the best economy class, so with great trepidation I flew on Emirates via Dubai, completely forgetting that Dubai is the hub for all the Filipino migrant workers. Call me whatever you like but when you are trapped in economy class that is filled to the brim with migrant workers the smell gets a little funky after nine hours of flying.”

The People Asia article came out June which could mean it was delivered out about mid May. That’s still about a month between release of the 2 articles. A newspaper is usually supposed to be cheaper than a magazine making the former easier to buy. Why the earlier article didn’t elicit a response is anyone’s guess?

And the statement “Call me whatever you like ….” is intriguing. Seems like an open invitation.

Including also the part “And sometimes I can remember people by their sense, call it weird but its true. Some studies actually state that men and women are more primarily attracted by scent than by physical attributes. I may forget a loverÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s face but I never forget his scent.”

It reminds me of a Cherie Pie Picache scene where they were decidng to leave the lights on or off.

And her April 9 MST article was titled “The Diva goes to Greece” yet she asks in her infamous response “Ã¢â‚¬Å“Now I seriously ask you, am I being a diva or are people around me just lacking in common sense?Ã¢â‚¬Â. Now that I found hilarious.

So, this is the snooty woman who wrote that article. With that fake hair colour, clown-like red spotted cheeks, bursting tight shirt and big chunks of a necklace, what right has she to berate those ‘cheap perfume’ wearing maids? I don’t know why she calls herself a diva. She reminds me of New York’s trans fat problem.

It isn’t a joke to generalise people. If only she knows what it entails to even cross the ocean and work. Obviously she doesn’t.

I tried to find out her style of writing. I do not see any consistency.

In one article, she would be enumerating the so-called friends in the high society wearing such and such brands, using such and such perfume.

In another article, she would berate people who are brand conscious.

In one article where she said that “wlang karapatan magsuot ng perfume kung Axe lang naman at yong mga binili sa Tourist Duty Free SHop, one of the perfumes that she identified to be a favorite of her nephew can be bought from the TDFS.

The controversial article from the magazine was a combination of three articles in the newspaper.

You asked me why, it took months before the campaign was launched?

There were already discussions about the “panlalait of a fat lady” in forums before the campaign made by Nick.

I can’t just find the url of the forum. I came across that
when I read nick’s call. I was looking for more info about Malu. Nah, I did not receive any e-mail from anybody.

Then, I took a close look at Manila Standard. It is an elitist newspaper. If you will look at the survey they conducted, most of the people reading it are professionals in the Philippines who got one or two houses, gainfully employed have gone abroad once or twice.

That answers the questions why only now. Malu Fernandez’ is not being read. I remember, I stumbled on one of her article before the controversy, I thought she was phony in writing that lifestyle column. She was endorsing a cosmetic that her “kind” would not like to be seen powdering their noses with that brand in public.

So why the outrage in the magazine’s article?

Because of the “funny comments” about being in a plane with the domestic helper.In MS, she wrote Filipino migrant workers for OFWs and their being stinky is caused by being in the plane for nine hours.

But in the magazine, the message that she conveyed the readers is that all OFWs in the Middle East are domestic helpers. Yes, she misjudged that people would not mind because the DH probably would not cry for discrimination. They don’t read Manila Standard and they may have not heard about the magazine.

As I have said, it took a non-OFW and non-migrant Nick to rally the bloggers. One or two joined because they just had an altercation with one MS columnist.

Yeah there were already discussions in several forums before this but those were just discussions that after some days of heated arguments, the issue would just die. It’s different when aside from making noise, there are steps to get results. Thus the campaign was born.

Now there is the question why MS was quiet about her firing.

There is my theory that they would like to protect people from being dismissed due to hate mails.

After the search, I found out that her connection to the alta sosyedad is her kinship to Vicki F. Zubiri, the wife of the Gov who’s in the haute couture business. Her father was a dermatologist.

MS is being sustained by subscriptions and ads. I got a feeling that she was recommended by someone who must have a clout. It must be some big fish among the subscribers or ads sponsor that they could not afford to offend.

Frankly, I do not consider her a journalist. She’s just a mouthpiece for companies that give her lots of freebies in exchange of write ups in her columns. Cheap advertisement compared to thousand-per-column inch regular print ad.

I do agree with Ormocanon that there’s a Malu Fernandez in all of us, in one form or another. There are just some who’re hypocrite enough to deny they have such prejudices.

I’m rather in fear of what will be coming next after this issue has died down. Will the people start throwing hate mails (or hate blog posts) at the writers when they don’t like what he’s written and scream for his blood? What will happen to the current freedom of speech that all of us are enjoying? Although there is no such thing as an absolute freedom, will this freedom be curtailed just because of political correctness?

“Before the Zara show started, yummy hors dÃ¢â‚¬â„¢oeuvres were served with refreshing Bellinis and champagne cocktails that I thoroughly enjoyed with handsome and dashing Raul Manzano and Philip Cu-Unjieng of Metro Society together with big boss Monchet Olives and Ã¢â‚¬Å“lusciousÃ¢â‚¬Â Tara Santos of Town and Country I also spotted my favorite Ã¢â‚¬Å“fierce and fabulousÃ¢â‚¬Â editor Joanne Rae Ramirez who was chatting it up with Senator Franklin Drillon.”

Ah, so that’s who her editor is. One of Malu’s “friends” who found her articles humorous and saw it fit for printing. Wonder if there’s any calls for her to at least issue an apology too…

I initially thought the magazine which is priced higher had more readers than a cheaper newspaper. But then the pictures could have been “eye candy” to read on.

But I’m a little dismayed that you are stating that
“But in the magazine, the message that she conveyed the readers is that all OFWs in the Middle East are domestic helpers.”

It’s as if the Filipino migrant workers themselves are putting up the issue of “class division” among them.

And that this issue might not have reached this far IF ONLY the domestic helpers were affected and not the other migrant workers.

As based again on MST- “… Dubai is the hub for ALL THE FILIPINO MIGRANT WORKERS. Call me whatever you like but when you are trapped in economy class that is filled to the brim with migrant workers the smell gets a little funky after nine hours of flying.”

The implication in that would have been that if the economy class was filled by people OTHER THAN Filipino migrant workers; the smell wouldn’t even be a little funky EVEN after nine hours of flying.

Otherwise she could have just written that the smell would have been a little funky in an economy class that is filled to the brim with people after nine hours.

jl, i think this issue really blew out of proportion not so much bec of people’s rage agst Malu’s bigotry, but bec Malu herself was so easy to dislike. the fact that most of comments proliferating the net are about Malu’s physical condition and personality and not about class discrimination per se proves that Filipinos aren’t really easy to offend with discriminatory statements. what Filipinos do hate the most are people who are “feeling” and we can safely say that Malu falls in that category.

betcha if Malu was as beautiful as Gretchen and as filthy rich as Bill Gates, everyone would’ve let her comments slide and tell themselves she’s entitled to her elitist opinion since she’s filthy rich and ultra beautiful anyway.

once again, proving, that those who threw insults at Malu based on her physical appearance aren’t any better than her. the only difference was that Malu was in the profession of journalism, and that those who insulted her aren’t.

I feel sorry for Malu. Mean and spiteful things were said: from Balyena in Boracay to Ms Malu’s oinkscapades. She shouldn’t take it personally. Roastings ? Death threats? Ay sus she’s overreacting. It’s just the hoi polloi’s version of acerbic wit. If she thinks it’s offensive then she should stop reading it. Quid pro quo, Clarice.

Well I guess she’s very successful in getting all our attention! If this is her way to popularity… it’s a dead end. She’s a perfect villain like in Harry Potter’s (Dolores Umbridge). I wouldn’t waste my time talking about her preposterous personality but I will make fun of her pictures and try to manipulate these. 🙂

[I also spotted my favorite Ã¢â‚¬Å“fierce and fabulousÃ¢â‚¬Â editor Joanne Rae Ramirez who was chatting it up with Senator Franklin Drillon.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ah, so thatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s who her editor is. One of MaluÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s Ã¢â‚¬Å“friendsÃ¢â‚¬Â who found her articles humorous and saw it fit for printing. Wonder if thereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s any calls for her to at least issue an apology tooÃ¢â‚¬Â¦]

so many people have been dragged into this issue…all because of a simple, careless statement allowed to be published and later publicized to a mammoth scale.

I just hope everybody learned a lesson or two from this journalism “faux pas”!

“Let the one among you who is without sin, be the first to throw a stone at her.”
(And Ã¢â‚¬Å“Let anyone who is without sin, throw another evil word at her.Ã¢â‚¬Â)

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.Ã¢â‚¬Â

You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, Ã¢â‚¬Å“You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgmentÃ¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦..

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Stop judging, that you may not be judged. For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Ã¢â‚¬Å“

Ã¢â‚¬Å“And I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Whoever rejects me and does not accept my words has something to judge him; the word that I spoke, it will condemn him on ht last day, because I did not speak on my own, but the FatherÃ¢â‚¬Â¦..Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.Ã¢â‚¬Â

We have not heard the last of her apparently. Her resignation was not accepted by Manila Standard Today editors and her column “Divalicous” will be back on Monday. This according to http://www.annalyn.net/

Maybe Manila Standard Today is capitalizing on the interest of the OFWs and their supporters in this issue. Negative publicity is still publicity afterall.

Must say I agree with Cath: “No amount of accessories and expensive perfume (yong pabango niya, air freshener dito) can give that lady, class.” (Btw, never heard of Ms Fernandez’ Jo whatever scent.)

I will be a bit more scathing – never mind her visciousness and cruelty vis a vis the OFWs she met and boarded with on economy class – after reading her offending article, I thought what was intolerable was her vulgarity – very Madame Bovaryesque.

The statements of Malu Fernandez should be taken seriously by everyone who had read it. Indeed, those are vitriolic words thrown at OFWs. Not all OFWs are “unskilled” but this is a sad reality that some compatriots are considered such. In fact, those very bad words are just a piece of what some OFWs are experiencing far away from home.

I think the essence of it all is for us to build our country, where leaving is not an option just to earn a living. This is a challenge to our government to aspire for the best life Filipinos could ever have. Not purely words from our leaders but a strong will and determination to transcend.

Take the Singapore example. The Singapore government doesn’t like their citizens to be “domestic helpers”. Not because they deem that being domestic helper is bad or a low class work but because having such kind of work won’t give the best life for Singaporeans. And this is what the Philippine government should similarly aspire for – that every Filipino should have the best life in terms of economic status, literacy, access to world class facilities and technologies, security, peace and all other conveniences. So that just like Singapore, we could have the best government in the world characterized by a concerned, loving, and well-providing government.

I think, the main problem with us Filipinos is that we approach situations like this (Malu Fernandez publication) in such a “joking” way (as our usual expression of resentment like the “dancing queen” with Senator Oreta). I think the better approach is to be straightforward, serious and show the consequences of one’s action. With this approach, we Filipinos could have a different mindset in which we aim for doing all good by thinking twice before doing anything. Otherwise, we would expect to see Malu Fernandez in the august halls of senate in the year 2010!

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Does any one of you TRULY love the LORD, our GOD?Ã¢â‚¬Â
Ã¢â‚¬Å“Does all these WICKEDNESS you say makes the LORD happy?Ã¢â‚¬Â
Ã¢â‚¬Å“Does HE agree with the EVIL things you say?Ã¢â‚¬Â
Ã¢â‚¬Å“As you CONDEMN, do you want GODÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s CONDEMNATION? Or Ã¢â‚¬Å“Do you follow GODÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s commandments? Have you FORGIVEN? As much as you also wants GODÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s forgiveness? Does anyone of you have FEAR in GOD?

Ã¢â‚¬Å“HATRED stirs up disputes, but LOVE covers all offenses.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“The path of the wicked enter not,
walk not on the way of evil men;
Shun it, cross it not, turn aside from it, and pass on.
For they cannot rest unless they have done evil;
To have made no one stumble steals away their sleep.
For they eat the bread of WICKEDNESS
And drink the wine of VIOLENCE.
The way of the wicked is like DARKNESS;
They know not on what they stumble.
But the path of the just is like shining LIGHT,
That grows in brilliance till perfect day.

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Are you following the narrow path to GODÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s Kingdom? Or are you following the wide road to MANÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s wickedness straight to eternal damnation?

Ã¢â‚¬Å“For this is the MESSAGE you have heard from the BEGINNING, We should LOVE one another.Ã¢â‚¬Â

Ã¢â‚¬Å“Let GO and Let GOD Ã¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦. It is not for you to condemn nor judge, but is only of GODÃ¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦.., but as you FORGIVE, then you shall be FORGIVENÃ¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦.

Ã¢â‚¬Å“And if anyone still continues to DO and SAY any EVIL and does not hear the GOOD words of our LORD, he makes himself liable to GODÃ¢â‚¬Â¦Ã¢â‚¬Â¦.AMEN.

Well people, after all that has been said and done about Ms. Malu Fernandez and about her supposed submission of her resignation paper both from People Asia Magazine and The Manila Standard Today, surprise, surprise. Today, her column in The Manila Standard – Divalicious came out to talk about, well, “make-up.” Seems like her resignation was not accepted.

I will admit this is only the fourth article that she has written that I’ve read since the netizens shook her to her senses. The first being the People Asia Article – From Boracay to Greece, second, her Am I a Diva! Or do you lack common sense?, third, her apology and “resignation”, and today’s article in Divalicious entitled, Unseen evil on your dressing table.

Interestingly, her column which came out today, September 3, 2007, Monday did not include names of High Society personalities and Brand Names. And it was toned down. Way way down. Her article tackled on how to keep the ladies’ make-up space and equipment clean to prevent rashes, eye infections and other allergic reactions and the expiration of make-up. And also a big surprise, is she even talked about how TO SAVE on lipstick and to not be be a “label whore” since the more EXPENSIVE brands and the CHEAPER ones contains the same ingredients and costs about $0.50 to $1.00 to make. The difference in pricing in the end product lies mainly in its packaging and marketing.

For me, I’d say, judging from this latest column of hers in the Manila Standard Today, I think she has learned her lesson and learned it well.

Yeah, i’ve just read her new write-ups today in Manila Standard entitled “Unseen evil on your dressing table” but not the entire article – already i lost my appetite. I thought she resigned. It would only mean that her resignation was not accepted by the management and now she’s back. Well as i’ve said i lost my appetite while reading the article and they (www.tingog.com group) have my support, to BOYCOTT those 2 publications. I am also an OFW, a hardworking one. I won’t allow anybody to step on my feet and degrade our dignity. They have no idea what i’ve been through while working in this foreign land.

I for one have friends and family who work abroad for a living. And it is disheartening at times that it tugs on my heartstrings when I talk to them on the phone or even over the internet and they hear the television or the radio in the background and they would ask to put the receiver closer to the source of the sound so just they can “hear” a little bit of home. More so if they are having problems or sick and they have no one there to care for them except other OFW’s who are free from their work schedules.

In my case, I’m not totally excluding the Manila Standard Today (MST) from my reading list. I believe there are more intelligible, sensible and credible writers in MST.

As of today, I promise myself that “Unseen evil on your dressing table” will be the fourth and last article I will read of Malu Fernandez, even if she comes out with another article displaying her “acerbic wit” and her brand of humor.

I leave it saying there will be no complete absolution nor total restitution in the absence of an equal and just amount of retribution. So there.

Yes, I was also suprised to know that this Malu Fernandez still reigns in her world!…this is a very sad development indeed!…this means that all of the effort exerted in order to hear our sentiment fell deep down the sewer!…well, what can I say more…I will just brace myself for another round of mocking from this Malu Fernandez on her next flight to kingdom come!…

Yes indeed!! Malu Fernandez triumphantly returns with full backing of her editors and publications. The last laugh is with her and she acts as if nothing happened even after countles emails and comments from all over the world. Let us continue bombarding them with our sentiments until they relent. They are the ones who started this war, let us finish it.

The anger and revulsion Malu Fernandez spat out to the OFW community is only indicative of her personal issues of anger and revulsion. Any psychologist worth his salt will tell you that each individual goes through life projecting that which he or she truly feels at his or her core. So there is no need to humiliate her any further with name-calling. She has laid bare for the entire world to see that she is a very unhappy and angry woman full of self-loathing. The Christian approach would be to pray for her personal “enlightenment” – that she moves towards a realization that she is not the “ugliness” she thinks about herself at her core. When she has made peace with who she is and has learned to love herself, her childhood defenses will crumble. She will then cease lashing out because of her personal demons.

I have heard many in the blogosphere lash out in retribution at Ms. Fernandez. Many were on-point, but the vast majority was vulgarly off-point. I suppose that is the human condition – we react when our sensibilities are so shaken that we are left simply in a state of incredulity and disbelief, until a seething anger seeps in, waiting for the most convenient outlet. I understand the anger out there, and I understand everyone’s need and right to be heard. But applying Hammurabi’s principle of “an eye for an eye” just leaves everyone blind. Perhaps what would have been more constructive is to try to understand Ms. Fernandez’ deep-seated anger, and use that as a stepping stone to understanding our own personal demons. Perhaps then, we can be a kinder and gentler blogosphere.

To the millions of OFW-heroes, there was no degradation of your dignity. You continue to sacrifice for the sake of your families and country. Very few will dispute the nobility of your actions. Victimization is a state of mind, so choose not to be one. Do not give the unfortunate Ms. Fernandez that satisfaction.

Let us not try to divert the real issue: Was Malu Fernandez’s article justified? Do the OFWs in Dubai deserved to be insulted? Did Malu Fernandez has the right to use her privilege as a columnist to insult innocent people?

Well, a quezon is always known for their ‘we are above the ordinary pinoys’ attitude, ever since my dear departed lolo told us of the anecdotes featuring the late ‘president’ of the country. No surprise that the young quezon will take sides with anyone in his ‘class’ against the common masses.

I hope we can learn to forgive Malu Fernandez. I wrote an entry about her article and I hope you can find time to read it. It’s entitled “One Voice (An OFWÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s reaction to Malu FernandezÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s Ã¢â‚¬Å“From Greece to BoracayÃ¢â‚¬Â)” and I posted it here: http://lestercavestany.com/?p=10

I’m not an OFW but I have so much respect for each one. They are truly heroes and I say this not to patronize them but to really say WOW! You are amazing. The sacrifices you make for your loved ones is awesome. Malu Fernandez is a low class, no self esteem fat cow. She had no right to condescend on OFW’s. If ever she was uncomfortable during her economy flight it’s because she’s FAT! I’m not offended by her on account of me being is that ‘socioeconomic’ background nonsense she mentioned, I’m deeply hurt for those Filipinos who make honest hard earned money. Read nothing thicker than a magazine?? Malu Fernandez you are the most stupid and uneducated woman on earth. Maggot!!!!

I hope you have better reasons other than this shallow one. You’re a writer like Malu, you came from a social class like Malu, you must have been thinking that what if you wrote something similar to Malu, will PDI get me fired? You’re just protecting your own kind.

i just heard about this malu fernandez thing when i was watching cheche lazaro over the anc and truly, i am saddened by the attitude of one filipina who claims to be a eleitist but didnt bother to think that the persons she just discriminated are teh same persons helping the country’s economy thereby maintaining her elite lifestyle.

i am favor of her ersignation and truly i do not favor the boycott. at some the publishers should have also explained to teh public why they have allowed such article to be published.

anyways, i do travel three – four times a year to australia, UK, some parts of europe and the middle east because of a family business and most of the time i travel on economy class. i have experienced teh same situation where ofw’s will talk and laugh at the airport lobby, teh waiting lounge or even inside the jet but i never find it offensive or annoying rather i find it funny and emotional to see and witness the good nature we filipinos have. most of teh time this ofw’s doesn know each other yet they can inspire a very good conversation among themselves. you will see taht these ofws are just excited about their job or about their vacation. i dont see anything bad with that at all.

i am ust wondering if this malu fernandez is truly a member of the elite class or just another social climber or should i say a “wanna be”